Sarasota Concert Association presents
The Bridge Trio with Felicia Brunelle, Alfred Gratta and Cheryl Tschanz
In a Music Matinees Performance
December 11 § David Cohen Hall
(Sarasota, Florida) The Sarasota Concert Association’s free Music Matinees series launches its 2017-2018 season with The Bridge Trio, featuring Felicia Brunelle, violin; Alfred Gratta, cello; and Cheryl Tschanz, piano, December 11, noon, in David Cohen Hall at the Beatrice Friedman Symphony Center, 709 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. The trio’s program will include Antonin Dvořák’s Trio in f minor, Opus 65 and the Jose Bragato arrangement of Astor Piazzolla’s “Oblivion.” The concert is free and open to the public. For more information about Music Matinees, email Gail Berenson at [email protected] or Katherine Oarr at [email protected] or visit www.scasarasota.org.
“This remarkable ensemble is known for its innovative programs that bridge the great classics of piano trio repertoire with the new music of today,” says SCA board member Gail Berenson, who coordinates Music Matinees with fellow SCA board member Katherine Oarr. “We’re delighted to open our 2017-18 season with the return of these outstanding musicians.”
Formed in 2011, the Bridge Trio performs regularly as part of the State College of Florida concert series and for other events in the Tampa Bay region. (The group’s name is inspired by the many times its members have crossed the Skyway Bridge to perform their music.) The Bridge Trio presented “Coming to America,” featuring works by a wide range of composers, from Antonin Dvořák to John Adams, and “Notable Women Composers,” featuring works by composer Gwyneth Walker.
A long-standing member of Sarasota Orchestra and concert master of the Sarasota Pops and Missouri Symphony, violinist Felicia Brunelle has enjoyed an active career as a chamber musician, performing throughout the United States, Japan, Canada and, most recently, at the Esterhazy palace in Austria. Brunelle has performed with the Emerson and Tokyo String Quartets at the Yale Summer School of Music-Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada, and at the Tanglewood Music Festival in Massachusetts.
Alfred Gratta’s career has taken him across the country and around the world, as principal cellist for the Orquesta Sinfonica de Tenerife, and as assistant principal cello at the Classical Music Festival in Eisenstadt, Austria. Gratta is currently the president of the Greater Pinellas Music Teachers Association, a member of the artistic staff of the Pinellas Youth Symphony and principal cellist of the Saint Petersburg Opera Orchestra. Recent appointments include principal cello of the Tampa Bay Symphony, section cello at the Bellingham Festival of Music and adjunct faculty at Eckerd College and State College of Florida.
Cheryl Tschanz began her piano studies at age four and, at six, transferred to the Cleveland Institute of Music. At seven, Clavier magazine described her as having “startling qualities of great talent.” She made her orchestral debut at age 11 as guest soloist with the Cleveland Symphony Orchestra and, since then, has performed in concert halls throughout North America and Europe. A sought-after collaborator, she has, among other projects, designed and performed the sound track for the popular “Jack the Cuddly Dog” children’s video, and adapted and performed the music for the stage play East Lansing.
Music Matinees is a series of free concerts featuring performances by high-caliber, area-based artists. The series is designed to offer a wide variety of musical genres, including classical, folk, and jazz, featuring both vocal and instrumental performers. The 2017-2018 Music Matinees concert season continues with Sarasota Orchestra principals and EnsemblenewSRQ co-founders George Nickson, percussion, and Samantha Bennett, violin (Wednesday, January 17); Sarasota Orchestra principal bassist John Miller, in swing mode with the John Miller Jazz Trio (Wednesday, February 7); the State College of Florida Chamber Choir conducted by Melodie Dickerson (Wednesday, March 28); and “keyboard tour de force,” pianist Tom Purviance (Wednesday, April 18).
All Music Matinee performances are at noon at the Beatrice Friedman Symphony Center, 709 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. The series is free and open to the public. Seating is open; no reservations taken. For more information about Music Matinees, email Gail Berenson at [email protected] or Katherine Oarr at [email protected] or visit www.scasarasota.org.
Sarasota Concert Association’s 2018 Great Performers Series includes the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring conductor and violin soloist Pinchas Zukerman (January 11, 2018); the return of the Cleveland Orchestra under the baton of Franz Welser-Möst (January 29, 2018); violinist Gil Shaham, performing with pianist Akira Eguchi (February 21, 2018); the historic Staatskapelle Weimar, conducted by Kirill Karabits, with Catherine Foster, soprano, and Vadym Kholodenko, piano (February 26, 2018); the Takács Quartet (March 16, 2018); and the return of acclaimed pianist Emanuel Ax (April 3, 2018).
Five of the Great Performers Series concerts are at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 777 North Tamiami Trail in Sarasota. The March 16th concert is at the Riverview Performing Arts Center, 1 Ram Way in Sarasota. Subscriptions for all six concerts are $130, $200, $275, $355, and $420. Mini subscriptions are also available. For subscriptions and single tickets, call 941-225-6500 or visit www.scasarasota.org.
About the Sarasota Concert Association
The Sarasota Concert Association (SCA) is a nonprofit organization that fosters greater appreciation for world-class classical music by offering the community two engaging programs from November to April. The Great Performers Series, in its 73rd season, brings world-renowned orchestras and chamber groups to the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall and the Riverview Performing Arts Center. The Music Matinee Series features outstanding regional artists in free community concerts at Beatrice Friedman Symphony Hall and other venues. For more information about SCA, visit www.scasarasota.org.
